A.M. Roundup: Unions sue over retiree health hike

Good morning! It’s bitterly cold out! This should not be Roundup-leading news, but given the mild streak we’ve had, well, I wanted to give fair warning. Gov. Andrew Cuomo is still up in the Adirondacks, vacationing. Here are this morning’s headlines…

Public employee unions are suing Gov. Andrew Cuomo and the state over its decision to increase the percentage of premium contributions paid by currently retired state workers. Cuomo’s spokesman insisted the action, which took effect in October, is legal. (TU/NYP)

Yancey Roy: Pursuing a promise to improve state government, Gov. Andrew M. Cuomo has used a mix of guile, flattery, force and money to shake up Albany, a capital city known for political gridlock and scandal, legislators and analysts said. (Newsday)

Cuomo went grocery shopping as part of his Adirondack vacation: “When we rang him up, I was trying to steel myself to express disapproval of his austerity policies,” said John Hochschartner, who recently was arrested at an Occupy Wall Street protest in Manhattan’s Zuccotti Park. “I was considering telling him that I was one of the Occupy protestors heckling him outside the Skylight Soho, or that I didn’t think a tax deal endorsed by the Business Council of New York State, like his was, could be ‘progressive’ by any stretch of the imagination. But ultimately I lost my nerve and just helped bag his groceries.”